Bible Discussion Replies PAGE 203

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Remember thy father Dives, in whose steps thou walkest, and the same way leads to the same end. The Lord saith that "the wicked shall be turned into hell, and all that forgets God."10 But the deceit in thee says that thou mayst live in sin while thou art here and have thy thoughts in the world, and yet thou shalt enter into the kingdom of heaven too. Now who must be the liar, whether God or thou, O vain man? Was it not sin that separated God and man at the first, and thinkest thou to be reconciled again so long as sin stands in thee? Man was not created in sin, but pure and holy, in the image of God;11 and while he stood here he had communion with God and had the pure wisdom of God by which he was able to see into the wonders of God and to give names unto all creatures.12 But so soon as he had committed sin he was stripped of all this and became naked, and was thrust out of paradise, and was cursed from the Lord; yea the ground was cursed for his sake;13 and all this because of sin which thou thinkest so light of. For odious is sin in the pure eyes of the holy God, and didst thou but know thy condition as thou liest in sin, in thy first birth a child of wrath, and one to whom all the curses in the Book of God are due, thou wouldst tremble at sin and not plead for it, wherein thou plainly showest thyself to be the servant of the devil. And when thou thus abusest the goodness of God, that having left the failings of others upon record as warnings to all that come after not to do the like,14 and these thou makest use of to encourage thee in thy sin and filthiness; and because God is merciful to pardon sinners at what time soever they repent, therefore thou art encouraged to live in sin the longer, unrepented of. Now all that have eyes in their heads may plainly see whose child thou art: for the apostle saith, "Know ye not that the longsuffering of God, and forbearing, leads to repentance";

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it doth so to the children of God; but that scripture is fulfilled in thee which saith, "Because judgment is not speedily executed on the wicked, therefore his heart is set in him to do wickedness."16 And thus thou makest the mercy of God a cloak for thy unrighteous actions, and yet thou wilt talk of a redemer and of faith in Christ; but O friend where is thy redeemer witnessed while thou art yet in thy sins? What art thou redeemed from? or what art thou redeemed to? Those that are redeemed are set free from the servitude of sin,17 but thou servest sin so long as thou obeyest the motions of it; then where is thy freedom? Canst thou witness Christ died for thee, and thy sins still alive? How wilt thou witness his death in thee, or thyself dead with him? The saints that were dead with Christ were dead to sin; and (saith Paul), "How can you that are dead to sin live any longer therein?"18 and saith also, "Those that are dead with Christ are free from sin and are become servants of righteousness"; again he saith, "Now being made free from sin, and become servants of God, ye have your fruits unto holiness, and the end thereof eternal life."19 But while thou livest in sin thy fruits are unholy, and the end thereof is death; and then where is thy redemption? They who are redeemed by Christ are redeemed from earth and earthly things, unto God again, from whence they had fallen, out of every tongue, kindred, people and nation, and are made unto God kings and priests, to reign above sin on the earth,20 and are made conformable to his image again, which was lost by sin. But what conformity is there in thee while thou art in sin? Thou art not like him, but like the devil; for every sin is the image of the devil, who sinned from the beginning. And while thou committest sin, thou holdest forth the image of the devil in thee, who is thy father: and Christ told the scribes and Pharisees,

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who professed to be the children of God but lived in sin, that they were of their father the devil,21 for his works they would do. For every sin is the work of the devil, and (saith John) "He that commits sin is of the devil," and saith, "For this purpose was the Son of God manifested: to destroy the works of the devil."22 Whosoever can witness Christ manifested in them can witness sin destroyed; but if thou say thou canst witness Christ manifest in thee, and yet commit sin, thou art a liar: for the Scripture saith, "whosoever abideth in him sinneth not; whosoever sinneth hath not seen him, neither known him, and whosoever saith he knows him and keepeth not his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him."23 And saith the Holy Ghost, "whosoever is born of God sinneth not, but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and the wicked one toucheth him not"; and saith again that "whosoever is born of God sinneth not, for his seed remaineth in him, and he cannot sin, because he is born of God"; and saith plainly, "In this are the children of God manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother."24 God in all ages hath known his by their obedience;25 but thou sayest thou mayest live in disobedience and yet be counted one of his too. But where is thy mark by which thou art known from the world? Those that are God's are marked and known from the world,26 but thou art in love with the world and canst conform with them in all their ways, words, works, and worships, and yet would be counted one of God's too.27 O thou deceiver, thou deceivest but thyself and men that are like thee; for thou canst not deceive the Lord. Take heed, repent, halt no longer between God and the world.28 If thou wouldst own God thou must disown the world, and the world will disown thee: thou canst not have both.

James Nayler

Chris,

Romans 3:10,11 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

James 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.

These verses apply to ALL MANKIND. whether they lived in Old Testament or New Testament times. And for God to forgive any sin of any kind at any time is for that sin to have been paid for. And all of the sacrifices of the Old Testament could never pay the penalty demanded by the Law of God for any sin of any kind at any time.

Forgiveness of sin has everything to do with Salvation itself. Any Old Testament Believer was "saved" just like any New Testament Believer. That is, Christ must have "paid for their sins" and that Salvation must have been applied to them by making them Born Again. And that is ALL the work of God Alone, Grace Alone.

John 3:3,4 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? John 3:9,10 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?

Nicodemus was an "Old Testament" Jew under the Ceremonial Laws.

So again, Salvation, the forgiveness of sin, any sin of any kind in any time can only be forgiven if we have become Born Again by God's Grace Alone.

The keeping of the Ceremonial Laws, the keeping of any Law of God could never "save" anyone or forgive any sin at any time in history. Abel's sacrifice did not forgive his sins, did not save him. Abel's sacrifice was acceptable to God because God had "saved" him. Cain's offering was not because Gid had not saved him.

This is also my understanding Chris , thank you for explaining it so well . God would not tell the Israelites that their sins would be forgiven by those animal sacrifices if He didn't mean it . He said they would be forgiven so they must have been so . Once Christ appeared and willingly offered himself , then he became the Way the Truth and the Life and forgiveness is now only in him .

Yes David0921, I agree that the OT sacrifices pre-figured the perfect & everlasting Sacrifice by our Lord Jesus, yet it remains, how did God deal with the sin problem under that old sacrificial system?

The verses you shared from Hebrews chapter 10 are important & particularly verse 11, "And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins", shows us that those sacrifices could never deal with the sin problem as Jesus only could. They had to be 'offered oftentimes', whereas Jesus' Sacrifice was only offered once, as He, by His Own Sacrifice, fully met God's demands for the sinner's absolution.

Where sins of ignorance (of the Law) were committed, the sinner(s) brought in their sacrificial animal for the priest to perform the sacrifice unto the LORD. We read in Leviticus chapter 4 about this; and after the offering unto the LORD was completed, "...the priest shall make an atonement for his (the person's) sin that he hath committed, and it shall be forgiven him": Leviticus 4:35. Who forgives the sinner this sin? Was it the priest or God? So, there must be a forgiveness of sins committed under this system (not the wilful sins of breaking the commandments which required death); but I understand that God's Forgiveness was based on contrition for sin, of offering the sacrifice, & this was both specific & temporary - for the priests had to do this for all sin & each year for the sins of Israel. And all these pointed the people, maybe with limited understanding, to the coming Sacrifice Who would remove such a temporary covering of sin; where the Sacrificed Lamb ever stands before God's Throne and where sinners saved through the Cross simply confessed their sin & were sure of God's continual Forgiveness, based not on what they could possibly do, but all that Christ has done.

This is how I read the Bible interpreting itself: the OT was just as important - where sinners found forgiveness there as well.

Thank you brother Carleton. It's good to see you back on these pages & trust that you have been enjoying the immeasurable blessings of the Lord, the Faithful One.

Hi David0921

Greetings in Christ JESUS

Yes, "every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man(JESUS) after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

The sacrifice of JESUS has lasted around 730.000 days, and has prevented until now the appearance and manifestation of the man of sin, the son of perdition (an ex-cherub). "Who (will) opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God(will)sitteth in the temple of God(in the great city of Jerusalem where our Lord was crucified),shewing himself that he is God.Paul Apostle said:2 Thes.2:6-12:

6 And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. (The time is from now on, in his time)

7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let(but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way, that is the sacrifice of JESUS), until he be taken out of the way.(the sacrifice of JESUS will be take away)

8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed(a false messiah, AN IMPOSTOR, John 5:43-47 and Revelation 12:11),whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of His mouth,and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming:

9 Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders

10 And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the Truth(they received not JESUS), that they might be saved.

11 And for this cause GOD shall send them strong delusion,that they should believe a lie:

12 That they all might be damned who believed not the Truth(they believed not in JESUS),but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

Get ready,stay in Revelation 11:15-18

GOD bless

Will do thanks Pastor Ray, appreciate it very much. If you ever read something I say on here & its wrong biblically, will you please take a min to correct me? Like a verse then can look it up. I pray before responding & believe He is guiding me in my words. Yet, not meaning to upset anyone, I have a rambling problem when I get to going, so at times my words tend to stray off what He may have really wanted me to say.

Read Deuteronomy 4:6

It says there is one Lord (God).

Jesus said, " I and my Father are one".

Father, Son, and Holy Spirt are three titles for one God. Just like my dad, my dad is a father, son, and brother, but, he is one person. It the same way with God.

CONCERNING THE ONLY WAY OF SALVATION by Issac Penington

1. That there is no way of being saved from sin, and wrath eternal, but by that Christ alone which died at Jerusalem. There is no name, virtue, life, or power under heaven given, by which lost man may be saved, but his alone.

2. That there is no way of being saved by him, but through receiving him into the heart by a living faith, and having him formed in the heart. Christ saves not as he stands without at the door knocking, but as he is let in; and being let in, he brings in with him that life, power, and mercy, which break down the wall of partition, unite to God, and save. The Jews could not be saved formerly by the belief of a Messiah to come, with the observation of all the laws and ordinances of Moses; nor can any now be saved by the belief of a Christ already come, with observation of all that the apostles commanded or practised; but alone by the receiving of him into the heart, who there works out the salvation.

cont.....

3. That there is no way of receiving Christ into the heart, and of having him formed there, but by receiving the light of his spirit, in which light he is and dwells. Keep out the light of his spirit, keep out Christ: let in the light of his spirit, let in Christ: for the Father and the Son are light, and are alone known and received in the light; but never out of it.

4. That the way of receiving the light of the Spirit into the heart (and thereby uniting with the Father, and the Son) is by hearkening to, and receiving its convictions of sin there. The first operation of the Spirit towards man lying in the sin, is to convince him of the sin; and he that receives not the convincing light of the Spirit, the work is stopped in him at the very first; and Christ can never come to be formed in him, because that light whereby he should be formed is kept out. And then he may talk of Christ, and practise duties (pray, read, and meditate much), and gather comforts from promises, and run into ordinances, and be exceeding zealous and affectionate in all these, and yet perish in the end. Yea, the devil will let him alone (if not help him) in all this, knowing that he hath him the surer thereby, he being (by the strict observation of these) kept out of the fear of the danger of his condition, which otherwise perhaps he might be made sensible of.

Hi Elliux2

Greetings in Christ JESUS

See,what matters and prevails is the Word of GOD.The Word is GOD,self-executing,understand?

1 Thess.4:16KJV reveals:The Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout,with the voice of the archangel,and with the trump of GOD:and the dead in Christ shall rise first:The archangel has a name:Michael.The Lord Himself shall descend with the voice of archangel.There will be a WAR against the Devil's world in this current time of Apocalypse

Dan.12:1-3:-1 And at that time shall Michael stand up,the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people:and there shall be a time of trouble(Matt.24:15-25),such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time:and at that time thy people shall be delivered,every one that shall be found written in the book

2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,some to everlasting life,and some to shame and everlasting contempt

3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament;and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever

Rev.11:15-18KJV

15 And the seventh angel(actually an archangel)sounded;and there were(will be)great voices in heaven,saying,The kingdoms OF THIS WORLD are become the kingdoms of our Lord,and of his Christ;and he shall reign for ever and ever

18 And the nations were(will be) angry,and thy wrath(GOD'S WRATH)is come,and the time of the dead,that they should be judged( Daniel 12:3),and that thou should give reward unto thy servants the prophets,and to the saints,and them that fear thy name,small and great;and should DESTROY them which destroy the earth

Dan.12:10-Many shall be purified,and made white,and tried;but the wicked shall do wickedly:and none of the wicked shall understand;but the wise shall understand.11-From the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away,and the abomination(of desolation)set up,there shall be 1290 days.12-Blessed is he that waiteth, and comes to 1335 days.

Elliux2 Thank you for your comment, sadly many people in this group do not see this as clearly as you and I do. If one does not see this, it makes it truly impossible to see the True timeline in the Lastdays prophecies. It would be like trying to put a puzzle together with pieces that just don't fit, it cannot be done! And it would seem that the pre-tribulation rapture theory is the first piece of that puzzle that does not fit, which causes confusion in other parts of the prophecies. A perfect example of this is all believers in the pre-trib rapture will see ( Mt 24:29-31) as the return of Jesus on a white horse because v29 clearly says "Immediately after the tribulation". They say it has to be the return on a horse because it says ((after the tribulation))

Thats also why pre-trib believers say Mt Ch. 24 is only for the Jews, but ( Mark 13:24-27) tells us the same thing. And the last verse in that chapter is ( Mark 13:37) which says "And what I say unto you I say unto all, Watch". This is prophecy for us for the time we are living right now just like ( Mt 24:29-31) is prophecy for us today!

Again thank you Elliux2 for your comment.

Blessings to you and all who seek His Truth.

"And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." Revelation 19:10 KJV

A beautiful scripture!

Hi Jema,



Thank you, I read the comments every day.

God bless,

RLW

Chris,

This is a classic example of why we must read the Whole Bible interpreting scripture with scripture to come to Truth. And how the Bible is its own interpreter.

When we fail to do this we are almost certain to come to wrong understanding. Christ spoke in parables and without a parable spoke he not. The Old Testament Ceremonial Laws were a "historical parable". A shadow pointing to the substance.

Hebrews 10:1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.

Hebrews 10:2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.

Hebrews 10:3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.

Hebrews 10:4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.

Hebrews 10:5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:

Hebrews 10:6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

Hebrews 10:7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.

Hebrews 10:8 Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;

Hebrews 10:9 Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.

Hebrews 10:10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Hebrews 10:11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:

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So what did Jesus' Blood do that no other sacrifice could?

A. it was the only RANSOM price for sin (all sin, for all people): Matthew 20:28; 1 Timothy 2:5,6.

B. it was the only way to bring RECONCILIATION (no longer enemies, but now accepted & in peace) with God ( 2 Corinthians 5:18-21).

C. it was the only way to PROPITIATE (to appease & turn away God's Anger) knowing that His Son's Blood fully met His Holy Demands to save those who would believe in Him ( 1 John 2:1,2).

D. it was the only acceptable SUBSTITUTE that it would be Jesus that received man's condemnation, that no animal's blood could ever accomplish ( 2 Corinthians 5:21).

E. and all this gave irrefutable proof that God's LOVE for sinners was genuine & lasting, that His Own Life, of His only Begotten Son, should be evident to all.

True love can be seen when "a man lays down HIS life for his friends" ( John 15:13), & not just delegating the task to another. The Blood of Jesus, God's Son, shows us clearly, & should also do to the world, that God is indeed a God of Love, giving His best, His all to secure our salvation: given to all those who will respond to Him in faith in this great Work.

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Hello Kstott. When the Bible speaks of blood, whether of animals or man, it denotes the miracle of life given us by God; "for the life of the flesh is in the blood" ( Leviticus 17:11). As all mankind are born with sinful flesh, with a propensity to sin & violate the holy requirements of God ( Romans 3:23), God being both loving & just, is compelled to either condemn us or forgive us. To condemn would be simple, as we fully deserve the penalty of our sins ( Romans 6:23), but God reached out to us in our miserable hopeless state & provided a way of hope, healing & restoration.

To His people Israel of old, God instituted the sacrificial system where the high priest would offer the blood of animals to atone for their sins & reconcile them to God ( Leviticus 8:15; Exodus 30:10). It was a case of the people either dying in their sins or that a substitute was provided on their behalf so their lives were spared. At this time, animals were sacrificed & their blood shed (i.e. their life given), & this was accepted by God to forgive them. But this was done yearly, because the blood offering of animals could never be permanent as this was man's offering to God, to stay God's Hand from them. But God had planned a future day, when He Himself would offer His Sacrifice to fully atone & redeem His people - & this Sacrifice would be made available to both Jew & Gentile. And this Sacrifice was God Himself, in sending His Word to become man ( John 1:1-14) & giving His Life as the only Pure & Perfect Sacrifice that would be fully acceptable to Him.

Thanks so much for that RLW , clear and concise as usual . Glad to know that you are still out there keeping an eye on us :) .

This is why I DONT participate much when I am working. SMH

Goodnight and God bless.

Apparently I have done it again!

When I said "God set aside his intellect and spoke plainly so it wouldn't affect the work of God.

I meant Paul set aside his intellect and spoke plainly so it wouldn't affect the work of God.

This is why I participate much when I am working.

Goodnight and God bless.

INTRODUCTION TO EPHESIANS (Part 3):

V. DATE / BACKGROUND:

It was written around 63 A.D. while Paul was in prison in Rome ( Acts 28:16-31). Paul was in house arrest for two years. This was his first imprisonment. His second imprisonment is when he was in the Mamertine prison. But this first time, he was under house arrest for about two years.

Ephesians is one of the prison letters. That is, one of the four written by Paul while he was imprisoned at this time. The others were Philippians, Colossians and Philemon. So, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians and Philemon are known as the prison epistles or prison letters because they were written by Paul while he was under house arrest in Rome.

VI. DELIVERED BY:

It was delivered by Tychicus. Ephesians 6:21-22 and Colossians 4:7-8 tell us that Tychicus brought both letters. So, it is believed that Ephesians, Colossians, and Philemon, because Philemon is a man that lived in Colosse, so his letter accompanied the letter to Colosse, and Tychicus took all three and delivered them.

VII. SECTION OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF EPHESIANS:

CHAPTERS 1-3 - The Doctrine of the New Life in Christ.

CHAPTERS 4-6 - The Details of the New Life in Christ.

In other words, he takes the doctrine of the first three chapters, and he goes into detail and in depth of those doctrines, the function and performance of the church. He's going to present to us the armor of God all in those last three chapters.

That covers the introduction to Ephesians. Lord willing, I will share my introduction to Philippians soon.

God Bless!!!

INTRODUCTION TO EPHESIANS (Part 2):

So, John pastored there. And like I said, Paul was there for about three years. Timothy took over after him for a year and a half, and the letters and the missionary efforts coming out from here went all the way through and the seven churches in Revelation had actually started from out of Ephesus, one of the capitals and the main encampment of Christianity.

Right outside of Ephesus is where the tomb of Mary is supposed to be, as history tells us that Mary actually wound up in Ephesus and spent her last days there. Ephesus was the Roman capital of Asia. Ephesus was known for having one of the seven wonders of the world - the temple of Artemis (or Diana).

Ephesus is believed to be evangelized by Priscilla and Aquila. ( Acts 18:18-19). The church in Ephesus was later established by Paul during his third missionary journey. ( Acts 19). Paul ministered there for three years. After Paul left, Timothy pastored the church for about 1 1/2 years.

Paul wrote to Timothy in Ephesus to counter false teaching by two leaders in the church in Ephesus - Hymenaeus and Alexander ( I Timothy 1:3 and I Timothy 1:20).

Thirty years later, Christ gave the message to Ephesus in Revelation 2:1-7. So, thirty years later, the Lord said that you have left your first love. And that was Christ's message to them!

IV. THE THEME OF EPHESIANS:

It presents the believer's position in Christ. The term "in Christ" is the key phrase in the letter to the Ephesians.

INTRODUCTION TO EPHESIANS (Part 1):

I. ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

The author is Paul. His inscription is on all thirteen of his letters.

II. TO WHOM IT WAS WRITTEN

It was written to the church in Ephesus. Ephesians is believed to be a circulation letter distributed throughout Asia. The reason: Because many older manuscripts do not contain the words "in Ephesus" as in Verse 1. And so, in Ephesians 1:1, Paul writes and says to the believers who are in Ephesus. And the older manuscripts don't have the words "in Ephesus."

And that causes us to believe that once the church in Ephesus received this letter, they wrote their name in the copy of it, and then sent it to the other churches where other churches could copy it and put their name on it. It's not addressed to specific individuals, nor is it to correct a specific problem in a certain church. The whole presentation of the letter was as if it was distributed to the whole body of Christ, which indeed it is.

III. THE HISTORY OF EPHESUS:

Ephesus was the Roman capital of Asia. Paul, during his third missionary journey came all the way over to Ephesus and he ministered there for about three years. He went up the coast over into Philippi, and down the coast through Macedonia and Achaia, and then came back over to Miletus, and then went back to Jerusalem.

He actually started his missionary journey out of Antioch of Assyria, where all of the believers had gone after the persecutions began in Jerusalem.

Ephesus is the hub of Asia as far as the missionary work goes. The apostle John himself pastored here right before he died. He came back either before or after his time on the island of Patmos.

INTRODUCTION TO GALATIANS (Part 2):

III. THE HISTORY OF GALATIA:

The Celtics migrated from Gaul in Modern France around the 3rd century B.C.

The Romans conquered the Gauls in 189 B.C.

Galatia became a Roman Province in 25 B.C.

The name Galatia came to describe the entire Roman province.

The churches in southern Galatia were established during Paul's 1st missionary journey ( Acts 13:14-23). After Paul's 1st missionary journey, the Jerusalem Council met around 49 A.D. to discuss the problem of the Gentiles and the Law.

After Paul's 1st missionary journey and after the decision of the Jerusalem Council, false teachers (Judaizers) came into Galatia and infiltrated the churches with their false teaching. Shortly after the Jerusalem Council, Paul wrote his letter to the churches in the region of Galatia.

IV. THE THEME OF GALATIANS:

Salvation is by grace through faith alone.

V. WHY IT WAS WRITTEN:

False teachers attacked Paul's ministry and message. The Judaizers professed to be believers in Jesus as Messiah. Their doctrinal approach was the Gentiles are not in a position of Sons of the Covenant to receive the promises of God until they became Jews, and they follow the Law.

VI. HOW IT WAS WRITTEN:

The form of the letter of Galatians is different from all of the other letters written by Paul. Galatians is the only letter not containing a commendation. It is the only letter written by Paul that is addressed to more than one church.

VII. THE IMPORTANCE OF THE BOOK OF GALATIANS:

Galatians is a shorter version of Romans. Romans is considered the "Constitution of the Christian Faith." Galatians is considered to be the Declaration of Independence of the Christian Faith.

VIII. SECTION OUTLINE OF THE BOOK OF GALATIANS:

GALATIANS CHAPTERS 1-2 - The Defense of Paul's Ministry and Message

GALATIANS CHAPTERS 3-4 - The Doctrine of Justification

GALATIANS CHAPTERS 5-6 - The Doctrine of Sanctification

I will post Ephesians tonight also. Blessings!

INTRODUCTION TO GALATIANS (Part 1):

Paul said in Galatians 1:8-9 that if anybody preaches a gospel that is different than Paul's, let them be accursed. And we're going to see that applied to some false teachers that came into the area of Galatia.

So, he sets himself up. Everyone is going to be judged according to Paul's gospel. It sounds rather arrogant. But at the same time, he has been chosen by God to reveal the mysteries of the church of Christ to the church.

He's also connected to the Lord in that in Galatians 1:11-18, he said he did not receive his gospel through the teachings of man, but rather directly through Jesus Christ, as Christ revealed Himself to Paul as he was out in the Arabian Desert and back into Damascus which was right on the edge of what was called the Arabian Desert at that time.

So, the Lord gave Paul the gospel. Therefore, the teachings of the Lord and the teachings of Paul should be the same. In fact, not only are they the same, but Paul's teachings amplify and explain and go into more detail than some of the teachings that Jesus gave in the gospels. And many times, that Jesus taught in the gospels, He didn't give the answer. He didn't tell what it means.

So, we have to take it in context. And we have that safety valve because whatever conclusions we come up with as far as what Jesus is teaching in the gospels, we have about 63 years of teaching from Romans through Revelation of what they taught in the early church. And so, we can check our understanding to see if we understand that particular issue or teaching correctly. We just put it together.

I. ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Paul - Again, his inscription is on all thirteen of his letters.

II. TO WHOM IT WAS WRITTEN:

To several churches in Asia Minor in the region of Galatia.

1 What can wash away my sin?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

What can make me whole again?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Refrain:

O precious is the flow

that makes me white as snow;

no other fount I know;

nothing but the blood of Jesus.

2 For my pardon this I see:

nothing but the blood of Jesus.

For my cleansing this my plea:

nothing but the blood of Jesus. [Refrain]

3 Nothing can for sin atone:

nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Naught of good that I have done:

nothing but the blood of Jesus. [Refrain]

4 This is all my hope and peace:

nothing but the blood of Jesus.

This is all my righteousness:

nothing but the blood of Jesus. [Refrain]

Leviticus 17:11 Christ life was in His Blood

In Christ the words Blood & Life are synonym

1 John 2:6 2 Cor 2:15

in love & truth

Hi CJF,

Godhead is a word that is in 3 verses in the KJV. Acts 17:29 Romans 1:20 and Colossians 2:9. Godhead comes from an Old English word godhede in 1200 AD. In Acts it is the Greek word theios that means divine, manifesting the characteristics of God's nature. In Romans, it is the Greek word theiots that means divinity, divine nature. In Colossians, it is the Greek word theots that mean deity, fulness of deity.

These are three different Greek words that the translators chose to translate Godhead. You ask is the Godhead one God or three persons? Some use this word to refer to the doctrine of the Trinity but in the context of the chapters this word is used, does not refer to that.

Godhead is God the Father himself, it pleased him to have all His divine fullness to dwell in His only begotten Son. The meaning for the word Godhead is the divine nature of God that was manifested in His only begotten Son, John 10:38 John 14:10.

Your question is more about the doctrine of the Trinity I am sure others would reply on that.

I hope this helps,

God bless,

RLW

Thank you , yes , we are all of us ' works in progress' and brothers and sisters in Christ . I try to remember that every Christian I meet has their own personal relationship with God through Christ and we are all at different stages on our journey towards His Kingdom . We must not discourage each other along the way , I'm not the same Christian that I was even two years ago and I'm guessing that's true for most of us . We are learning and growing all the time and must respect each others journey and remember that others may be a bit behind us or a bit ahead of us . We are not in competition with each other and we should be uplifting encouraging and supporting each other along the way . This world is full of awful people who will drag us down and cause us all kinds of pain and sufferings , that shouldn't be how it is between fellow Christians . Jesus died for me , but not just for me , for you and you and you also , I must keep this in mind when posting to people on here . Jesus loves you and even if you get on my nerves sometimes I must must must love you also :) ! You are my brother or my sister , you belong to Christ and he wants you in his Father's Kingdom , so I must treat you with affection and kindness . For his sake we must be patient and kind to each other even if we believe that others are in some way in the wrong we must still be kind . As I said , we are all works in progress , none more than me :) .